all coach are a fuck in decesion making eg: pekerman he took riquelme off for cambiasso n crespo for julio cruz. maradona is a shit. sabella how he took lavezzi for a non existense aguero ...... all his forward except for messi n lavezzi were struggling with fitness before selection.......

Bielsa? He is not the most pragmatic manager out there and he just joined Olympic Marseille. However given Bielsa's combative nature, I wouldnt be surprised if he was looking for a new job in 1-2 years time. Sampaoli is another good candidate but he we would have to wait until after next year's Copa America.

If we get the chance then we must bring Pekerman back. Yes he made a costly mistake in 2006 but no one is perfect. Pekerman was also very unlucky in 2006. Sabella has also made mistakes in this tournament but he has had some luck as well. As for Pekerman with Colombia, he did a great job despite the absence of their best player and it was not Pekerman's fault his players were completely scared and nervous against Brazil. It was not Pekerman's fault Brazil were dirty and fouled his players all over the place. It wasnt Pekerman's fault the ref in that match was poor. With Pekerman as Argentina coach, I'm confident we can compete for the 2018 WC.

Martino didn't had ideas of his own, this was his problem. Simeone surely be our coach one day, but not now, I don't think so.

Bielsa? No no no! Pekerman? If possible, then yes! Yes, he made some mistakes in 2006., but we played so well, penalty shootouts are luck. And look what he did with Colombia, even they missed their best player Falcao.

But Sabella is doing right thing I guess. Coaches must change, because players get tired of them. Pep Guardiola said it and he left Barcelona. On the other side, Del Bosque didn't leave and we all know, what happened with Spain.

@Ayr18, Martino had a mountain of problems at Barca. He sure made mistakes, who doesn't? But it's not like he was free to choose what style Barca play. He was obliged to play a certain style and the club was in several off the pitch troubles that season, plus many injuries to their star players throughout the season.

Talking about Bielsa the Genius gibberish aside, I think we should play the same line-up as the semi against Germany. Playing Di Maria is a risk for such a tense match. We only lose one sub if his injury comes back, which is not unlikely. Sabella can sub him in later if he's fit enough.

Martino WTH messi doesn't like Martino's style martino doesn't have a winning mentality he came far in Copa libertadores and almost won the League 2 years ago then last year he got second in CUP and he could have saved the season by winning League last day.

@Zoroaster, What you wrote there is pure Bielsa fanboyism sorry. And don't tell me "Go watch 2002 matches". I definitely watched those matches. What are you on about exactly? I have no interest to buy your fanboyism about Bielsa cause I've seen enough of his geniusness! Did you also watch how his spell at Athletic end? How Simeone owned him in the Europa League final? How Barca walked all over them in CdR final and only stopped giving a shit after 3-0 or it could end up in a massacre? In your book probably more passes and possession is a definition of a genius rather playing smart and beating your opponent. Perhaps we should put the 2002 team on a higher place than the 1990, 1998, 2006 and 2014 team? Yeah genius!

I'm very saddened to hear that Sabella is leaving, I think he is a fantastic coach that gave Argentine football a much needed polish by adding a touch of pragmatism and humility.Now the next question is who can replace him and luckily Argentina isn't short on capable coaches since they seem to supplying the whole world (Colombia, Chile, Lige 1, la liga and the premier league) with them.Many of you have mentioned Bielsa and Pekerman and while they both have had their impact on Argentine football I for one don't want to see any of them anywhere near the team again.El loco maybe renowned for tactical know how but to me he was an utter failure and nothing, NOTHING can excuse the debacle that was 2002!As for Pekerman, well I love the man and I think he's a fine coach but one would be hard pressed to call him great.I admire the aesthetic touch that he adds to his teams but the man has one mortal, unforgivable flaw; he doesn't learn from his mistakes!!Twice, not once, but twice did he take out Requilme and go defensive to protect a lead and twice the team lost. Those 2 occasions were friendlies against Croatia and England and you'd think after that he'd learn not to repeat his mistake in the QF of the WC but you'd be wrong.

Basile was a fine coach that won alot with Argentina but in his second tenure he was out of touch and failed miserably and that should teach us all to be progressive and think forward rather than be shackled by the past.

So back to the original question, who should take reigns of the the seleccion? well our boys have a final to prepare for, so for now the more prudent question is how to wreck the German machine.

Leandro my dear friend it's really good to see you posting here again.Looks like you and I finally got our wish and Argentina now has 3 hard working, gritty yet talented midfielders.Also I would like you to read this article, it shines a bright light on the question of fatigue whether it will impact our boys or not:

My only concern is the difference in rest. Germans skipped and hopped their way past Brasil.. our players ran close to a hard 10 miles.. all with 1 day of rest less (why Fifa? Thats retarded, they should be same day).

If I where Sabella I would prepare for this fatigue, Id park the bus a little. Play from deep. Rotate the forwards.. pretty much the same approach he took with Holland, except the battle will be in the middle instead of in the flanks (Robben).

@tallman I always wondered what a fucked up national anthem brazil have coz the end of it had no music .... Now u tell me they actually sang after the anthem stopped playing !!!! Bunch of drama. Queens !!!! On a ESPN Article they predict argentina is going to lose 12-1 .... Which reminds me I have to buy the blue jersey for the finals !!!! There is no doubt in my mind we are going to win !!!!

The problem is ricky may lose balls too often..... May augusto get de nod.... I feel sab sacrifice lav n strengthen de mid, obviously with a foward thinking player..... If fit di maria, otherwise ricky or augusto......

Enzo is must, i said instead of lavezzi.... Without messi our situation will be totally dfrnt..... In that match if enzo was de one, then also we had that kind of a situation..... Messi on ground, whether he is doing good or not, we r playing with 12 men.....

Some logical analysts says that de battle will be between german defence n argentine mid (creative part).... If argentine mid can give adequate supply to their pacy forwards to test de unconvincing german defence......................................... They are all about midfield n if we boss or even match it, we will win......

Argentina was controlling that game, that's when Messi got substituted on the 60th something minute. Ricky couldn't even control the midfield against Nigeria (about 30minutes), what's makes you think he will play great against Germany.

Enzo proved himself already, against Switzerland, Belgium and Holland.

"the dizzying grace of Jurgen Klinsmann powering the German side of 1990 directly to the World Cup title". haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa grace LMAO THE DIVER, dizzying grace my ..........

"West Germany," again put the wraps on Maradona and got the win thanks to a controversial sending off -- the first ever in a final -- and an equally controversial penalty kick call later. Klinsmann was the man fouled, and Pedro Monzon was the man sent off. Monzon bitterly contested the red, claiming that Klinsmann had dived -- and given his reputation at the time, many believed the Argentine. As the game degenerated into a dirge, Rudi Voller was weakly fouled by Roberto Sensini late, and referee Edgardo Codesal pointed to the spot. Andreas Brehme scored, another Argentine player was sent off in the ensuing chaos, and a pattern was set: Not since then has either team tasted glory.'

I HOPE OU PLAYERS REMEMBER THAT GREAT INJUSTICE WE SUFFERED 24YEARS AGO

Germans are already celebrating like they won before a ball is kicked, flix magath German coach is saying he won't bother watching becouse Germany will win 3:0 he is sure about it, also muller is telling German fans back home to prepare for party becouse they will win, these Germans will wake up on Sunday

I think we have become emotional at this stage which is not a good sign in professional football. Look what happened when Brazil got emotional they hammered by Germany.

Argentina always play any tournament for winning it not just to reach final. We reached the final now we all have to act like champion fans should not be overwhelmed.

Coaching issues or others we can discus after the world cup. Right now this is not an important issue.

So I request to Roy to change the topic and please give us some development regarding : practice session, Press and other internal major issues like: Di Maria's chances to play the final, Rojo's health issue and our possible team formation in the final.

bielsa is the best coach ever.you can say what you want. that guy is a freak.we were unlucky in 2002.this time we were lucky thats it.imagine there was no own goal against bosnia.remember the penalty situation against iran.remember swiss hit the post in the last min.go watch all the fucking damn games in 2002 how ppl can be soooo ignorant it realy makes me sad.look how many chances we created in 2002 with dominant wondeful football.

what we were missing was luck.watch the fucking game against sweden how batistuta hit the post and now remember few weeks ago how we hit the post against nigeria and messi scored.

its all about luck dont be an ignorant try to be fair.you cant blame bielsa for anything.he walked through the olympic games without any opponnent score a single goal.they asked him to resign because the long termed plan was that pekerman takes over the team.

pekerman didnt take zanetti to the world cup and what was the reason ? everyone who lives in argentina knows the reason: yea because he is not a pekerman boy.the federation thought pekerman can take over and since he knows must of the players very well everything will go fine.the rest is history we all know what happened

tell me what was bielsas fault in 2002 ? that he believed in batigoal ? bielsa even took caniggia to the world cup because he didnt want to miss any opportunity of having someone who can help us in the world cup.

I don't know if this news about Diego is good or bad. He can motivate them over the top or he can disrupt them with his nonsense. This team needs to step out of his shadow and he better let it happen. He is a beautiful part of its history no doubt but it's time write a new chapter in our book.

Julio Delgado, that's an excellent news. I am watering in my mouth of thinking the flares raising in that hotel, when Diego and Mascherano will be there to motivate the team. The gates of hell will be opened I think.

Diego's an excellent motivator. I just hope that Diego will have the decency to shut up about tactical lessons. But he knows that he has no voice in that chapter and Sabella wouldn't allow it or hear him, if he decides to give lessons of tactics.

The team which won against brazil in knockout phase never won the worldcup.1986-france, 1990-argentina, 2006-france, 2010-netherland. The strange thing is the above mentioned teams reached final(except france 1986-semifinal) and they lost.

Diego Maradona to stay in same hotel as the argentina team and diego will accompany them to the final, link belowhttp://m.gulfnews.com/sport/football/diego-maradona-to-stay-in-argentina-team-hotel-1.1358455

Diego Maradona to stay in same hotel as the argentina team and diego will accompany to the final, link belowhttp://m.gulfnews.com/sport/football/diego-maradona-to-stay-in-argentina-team-hotel-1.1358455

In the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, Spain was crowned world champion after winning all of their matches 1-0 in the knockout phases. Argentina reached the Brazil 2014 final without conceding a single goal in the round of 16, quarterfinals or semifinals. If Argentina produce another similar result in Sunday's match at Maracana versus Germany, that similarity with Spain will be less of a coincidence and more of a pattern we should watch carefully in the future.

Everything depends on the eye of the beholder, but the only certainty is that, at a World Cup, it is critical to protect your own goal. In such a tight match, where collective play often makes the difference, keeping a clean sheet becomes a priority. Accepting this is a matter of personal preference, but denying it would be completely foolish.

Alejandro Sabella was the first to understand this. Since he took the helm of the national team, he tried to solve a years-old problem: serious difficulties in the back line. Argentina had the world's best attack, but a defensive structure that did not measure up. There was talk of "short blanket syndrome" (either your feet are cold, or your shoulders are) and of emphasizing the strengths. The team qualified with confidence for the World Cup in 2014, but these concerns did not diminish.

The opening match in Brazil arrived and the poor performance raised even more concerns as all of the teams Argentina faced in the group stage were able to create scoring chances.However, when nobody expected it, Sabella found the proper lineup and formula.

The first trial by fire was against Switzerland. Argentina was organized and focused, but suffered due to individual errors, particularly those of Federico Fernández and Fernando Gago. Nerves and the pressure understandably got the better of Fernández, and clearly neither Gago's mind nor body were fully in the game. The national team had a strong performance, despite needing a late goal in extra time, to take their place in the last eight.

Javier Mascherano has stuck his nose in everywhere on defence, literally. He has been the inspiration and glue for Argentina's backline.

In the quarterfinals, against Belgium, Sabella had the smarts, the insight and the courage to switch out two of the players that had started for most of his tenure. Demichelis and Lucas Biglia came on for Fernández and Gago. Their contributions were key to giving Argentina unexpected strength, with the result that at times the team seemed unassailable in the defensive third.

Against Belgium, they nipped the opponent's attack in the bud. Javier Mascherano and Biglia shut down Fellaini and De Bruyne. Moreover, Hazard was blocked by Basanta, who performed splendidly as a replacement for suspended Marcos Rojo. It was a collective effort, based on coordination in covering attackers and trust between teammates. Everyone worked for the benefit of the team, and that was the cornerstone and main reason for their success.

Sergio Romero shouldn't be left out of the clean-sheet conversation. He made some great saves versus the Netherlands, especially during the penalty shootout.

Demichelis provided peace of mind, solidity and poise, and enabled Ezequiel Garay's work in central defence to be fully effective.

Lucas Biglia was much more productive than Gago, as he passed the ball with confidence, created more space in the midfield and was vital in helping Mascherano recover the ball. Against Netherlands, the Lazio player ran farther than anyone: more than 9.3 miles.

It is said that champions are built back to front, moving from less to more in tournaments. So far, Argentina fits the bill.

Against Netherlands, the team first of all established their places on the field, setting up the line of four and the two central midfielders, and built their initiatives on that foundation. Zabaleta and Rojo joined the attack only when the defenders outnumbered the attackers, and Mascherano often moved into the middle to help out. Biglia was everyone's lifeline, a key player in this operation.

While the great strength of Argentina's new strategy is cohesion and collective effort, one particular individual stands out. Javier Mascherano is remarkable not only for his play Wednesday, when he was the heart and soul and the most adept player on the team, but throughout the whole World Cup.

In the six matches, the no.14's accuracy and intelligence were a step above the rest. He is probably the most consistent player of the entire championship. He is key to bringing lines together, and he organizes and brings out the best in his teammates.

Garay's performance was also noteworthy. The defender from Rosario has made almost no mistakes during the entire tournament. He won one-to-one contests, dominated the offensive free kicks of his opponents and showed great poise. He has been fast on the crosses and never fared badly. He is the best center-back of the World Cup, along with Mats Hummels.

This solidity can be attributed to Sabella and to the whole national team, because it is not just the work of the seven defensive players that should be commended, but also that of Ezequiel Lavezzi, Lionel Messi, Enzo Pérez, Angel Di María, Sergio Agüero, Gonzalo Higuaín and Rodrigo Palacio. All of them played as an integral part of the whole. They pulled back, marked up, looked out for their teammates and always helped out.

Argentina built its game from front to back, but as the tournament has progressed they've played from back to front. This is crucial for a team striving for the ultimate victory. Because if the level of the defence is maintained, nothing is impossible. Especially when Messi is up front.

90% of ball possession apparently were not enough to qualify you from your group. As the saying goes, you keep the ball, I get the title.

So you agree that Bielsa picked up the wrong players and yet was too stubborn to make the changes before it's too late. You also forgot Ariel Ortega. Someone who shouldn't have even played but yet played all 3 matches and his best contribution (beside ball hogging all the time) was a missed penalty!

there is no doubt,, that under pekerman argentina played the most beautiful football in the last 2 decades.. But when it mattered the most,, when argentina was choking germany to death-- He made the most idiotic tactical mistake of all time to give the game to the germans... I will never forgive him for that fatal decision but still pekerman is a very innovative coach and knows very well how to produce a winning team in youth level... But in high pressurized Do or die matches,, he always fails and he showed that against Brazil too this WC...

Sabella is the antithesis of Pekerman... For him only results count and nothing more... And he knows exceedingly well how to get RESULTS.. you may not like the way we've reached the final(i don't like it) but the FACT is that we've in here after 24 painful years and credit goes Hugely to this underrated man.. Our defense is now the best in the tournament and this why we got the right results... You can talk all day about "beautiful football",, Modern day football is very cruel and only the results count...

So although i want to see the 2006 team very much,, Sabella has given us the ultimate pleasure of playing the WC final... it transcends everything and now we are just one little step away from achieving our dream... It will be difficult,, it will be cagey but in the end,, the little genius will make the biggest of differences... Maracana will be it's ultimate witness...

I enjoyed the game Argentina played in 2006. Pekerman has a philosophy and that creates good football. It is primarily attack based. He took out Riquleme as he was getting tired. Thats what he said in some interviews I saw. His deputy Lucho did not live up and Cambiasso was not as good as an attacking mid fielder or an enganche. Now, one way to think about it is, he did not have a plan B. The team was too Riquelme dependent and he did not have any other option. He also seems to have one style, which is pleasing to eyes but not necessarily effective enough win a tournament.

Sabella, clearly is more pragmatic. I remember Basile. he used to say - we are Argentina, we play like we want to. Was pretty stupid, Dunga with 45 fouls basically killed him. Sabella as many have admitted is a humble guy. He is ready to play the way the situation demands. So it is not surprising he did consistently well through qualifiers and WC. At the Colombia game he found the system and since then he has done a wonderful job.

You also have to remember, Pekerman had a much better team compared to Sabella. It was more balanced. The defense was much better.

Finally, remember 2006 is full of one 6-0 win over Serbia. What were other games?

1. 2-1 win over Ivory coast - tight game. Crespo on a set piece and Saviola on one through ball.2. 6-0 - 24 pass goal3. 0-0 with Netherlands4. 2-1 heart attack game against mexico5. 1-1 and lost to germany

Its not that we were raining goals. Actually Maradona's Argentina scored more.

I think Pekerman's biggest mistake (beside not taking Zanetti to the WC) was subbing Cruz in. I still don't understand what was the point of that sub when Messi could give us a lot more, in particular keeping the ball and keeping the German's defence busy. I don't think subbing Riquelme out was that weird. He seemed a bit tired and the team needed more energy in the middle. The biggest mistake was that with these subs, German took the possession of the ball. With Messi instead of Cruz, who is merely a poacher and quite slow and lazy, we could use his pace, skills and energy to avoid gifting the ball to the Germans and therefore encouraging them to attack us.

Chainsaw, dude, I was there in Berlin in 2006 and I cried my heart out... Nobody like me and the people there understands it how it is to lose, after playing some awesome football and dominating the match for most of the time.

Ok, Klose hurt our goalkeeper and we were compelled to change him, but can you blame this only? Do you put in the game Julio Cruz when you have better subs?

Please let's not talk about this, it hurts to my heart.

So it was the first time and we can forgive him. But what about when facing Brazil now?

I cannot deny that Argentina played some awesome football, but under him we failed and now also Colombia. So something may be wrong with this coach...

I would love to have Pekerman back. Our 2006 team was very strong, balanced, and one of the best versions of Argentina in the post-Maradona era.

Pekerman balanced the 2006 side very well making some brave decisions and sacrificing some of our excellent attacking talent (something Maradona could not do in the 2010 WC).

Pekerman did make a major mistake by subbing out Riquelme in the 2006 match vs Germany but he was a bit unlucky as well because we had to waste a sub taking out the injured Abbondanzieri. By losing one sub, Pekerman was unable to bring on an attacking player when Germany later equalized.

With Pekerman we would have a strong team come Russia 2018 and I'd be confident about our chances of returning to the final.

Robben the loser: "argentina have no chance to beat germany in the final". I wonder how come this coward refused to take first penalty in the penalty shoot out and against mexico when he was granted a penalty...he was coward to take it himself.

chainsaw that game was won bygermans for two reasons THE BREAKING OF THE TOUREMENTS BEST GOALYS RIBS IN A ATTACK PLANNED AT HALF TIME THEY SENT IN A BALL THE GERMAN PLAYER RAN ACROSS THE BOX AND KUGFU KICED INTO ARE KEEPERS CHEST DELIBRATLY THEY COULDNT GET PAST HIM

then peckerman for some insane reason took of the best player in the competition ROMAN whobwas controlling the germans at will

I WANT REVENGE, in 2010 they racually abused the squad calingthem spics and south american niggers and are squad dully abliged by kicking some serious german ass in the tunnel one of are players apparantly knocked a german out

Pekerman also managed the senior team you know. Ask every Argentine fan and most of them agree that team played some of the best football we've seen from the NT in post-Maradona era. And they went out with their heads held high, unlike some teams who went out shamefully. Pekerman's Argentina owned a strong Germany side at their own soil for the whole match and only went out because of the penalties.

Chainsaw, I am not belittling him, it's what he really is, PekerQUARTERFINALSman. Sorry for the C.

Yes, he won 3 trophies with the young team, give him credit where credit is due... But Batista also won with some young teams and he won also the Olympic Medal in 2008. Where are these coaches where the play becomes hard, in competition which really matter?

I recently came to know that Nigeria won 4 WC U-17 trophies. I watched also the final of the last one in Dubai, where they played against Mexico and it freaked me out how good Nigerians were playing. Where are they now?

@di3z_dion, I'm just saying why stop trying to keep winning? Why stop trying to build and improve upon a working system? It seems like every four years we try to re-invent the wheel when we put in a new coach. The act of even finding the right coach is in itself a challenge and sometimes we fail miserably at that (ahem Maradona). If the ball is rolling, keep it rolling. In my opinion, if we win the WC, Sabella has a championship to defend in the next four years. He can't just pack it up, go home, put the trophy on his mantle and talk about how great he "used" to be. That's too easy. Look at Spain. The world champions didn't even try this time around. Do we want to be like Spain in the next four years? Look at the Germans on the other hand. They have made it close to the finals in almost every single WC. They have a system. Let's build a system.

haman: I agree sabella still does not use the bench very well and he has only one chance left to get it correct (unless we are winning the final 4-0 then he can bring on the 2 goal keepers as far im concerned lol)

di3z_dion, Pekerman's achievement with the Argentina U-20 NT is exemplary and admirable. And he made us play some sexy football. I agree with your points that he made mistakes, but Argentina owe this man a lot for what he's done with the U-20 teams. No need to belittle the man with some cheesy name calling.

Di3zI have a different take on it. The last 2 coaches couldn't get past Germany. We just met them earlier than this time. I think Sabella will this time. But make no mistake about it, Pekerman is a great great coach. I want Simeone, but would take Pekerman over Tata any day of the week and twice on game day.

Glad Italian referee rizzoli will referee in the final, he is great and no Webb , I was worried about that English donkey, no one is giving us a chance I looked at espnfc all their so called experts predicted Germany will win except one who chose argentina

Just a logical point of view. Sabella did a great job with the squad changing its defensive mentality, but he is still making tactical errors in the second half.

I f it wasn't for Measche and Romero we would've been screwed. He did a huge tactical mistake in the 2nd half when, pulled out Perez and Higuain for Aguero and Palacio, he submitted the game to the Dutch. I really got freaked out when I saw that and I prayed for positive result.

When you dominate the midfield and in need to win a match, you should never ever, commit such a crime! He just did like Maradona by weakening the midfield.

being a manager of a n/t is the thankless task and he will either be remembered asA: a brilliant tactician who was the master mind of Argentinas 1st w/c win in over 20 years or

b: a fool who despite having the best and most incredible attacking talent available to man was unable to utilise them properly when needed.

its an impossible task at the top of a n/t because their is only 2 things that can happen, you win the w/c and you are a hero or you don't and you are nothing like 30+ other managers.their is no in-between if you coach a country like mighty Argentina.for me personally, success will only be if when he wins the w/c on sunday, failure to do so is failure to me.

And once the new coach came, he should set up his strategy for 2018 and keep the same group of players with introducing few fresh blood in it, like Iturbe, Icardi and co.Even if the new coach failed in CA 2015, he shouldn't leave.

However, there is a possibility of a nightmare to all of you, if Grondona Jr got the job!! Imagine!!!

For those of you wanting tata you might as well get Basile back.Dude couldn't win shit at Barca with all that talent...not a thing. And we saw Messi at his absolute worst in a Barca uniform. Yeah let's sign him up.

Leo.t, nobody is replacing him, he will quit on his own for an obvious reason.

In football, the most sought for, longed and dreamt of prize is the World Cup, for a player and for a coach.

A coach who wins it knows very well that he cannot do better, this is his Opera Magna, his masterpice which can at most be equalized in the next round of world cup (never happened in football history), but never bettered, overturned.

What Sabella is announcing may be also a make up, a sort of psychological game to make the team play as the last and the one of their life.

It is not wise to step down now, that Copa America is here and the same generation of players can play more.

Tata Martino would be an excellent choice, but I don't think he will step in with the Copa America here, because there is no time to build a team according to some coach's philosophy. Tata Martino is too wise to know this.

Sabella knows that if he wins now, the players and the people will bow at his feet and beg him to lead them to Copa America...

On the other hand he knows that it's difficult to have the same result. What he did for us nowadays, can be easily forgotten if Argentina under his coaching has bad results in Copa America. Especially and sadly, in an emotional nation like Argentina this is true.

Let's see, only time will tell it. I am enjoying the present and future doesn't matter when we are one step closer to glory

Messi looked a little off-color against the Dutch. His father gave a statement that he's exhausted! Do you guys think a different Messi will show up on Sunday & we'll see some match-winning moments from him? If we need to win in 90 minutes, Messi needs to definitely fire. Any thoughts?

You guys have to know something, which you clearly imagine but fail to aknowledge. For a starting footballer, like Di Maria and Rojo, the only way to make them not play, as one said, is to amputate their legs. Otherwise no way they will miss the world cup final.

Probably they will come as subs, who knows. The speedest players when the Germans are tired... an orgasm for us.

I very much think that Rojo's leaving the training is a show and Di Maria's not yet sure condition are all shows... A show engineered by Don Sabella... He leaked this news to the media on purpose.

Joachim Low must plan according to the adversary team. They must know what players the other team will display on the pitch, so to plan what to do. I now imagine a Low biting his nails and a Sabella grining.

This is psychological warfare folks, we are before a world cup final and everything counts...

Trust me I am really sad. I was dreaming to win Copa America and build a solid deffence over the year in his system. Doesn't whoever comes El choco or El pocho it will take time to come in this position. It's not club football to build a team in everyday it's national team which takes even year to find out your best team

No matter what, he should continue for atleast until 2015 Copa. I would have said this even if we didn't reach the finals. We will never get a humble, simple, ego free, quality tactician who can built a team with stars and lesser known ones. He is a stubborn coach and never picked players on the advise of fans or grandpa grondona. Sabella fan forever. Vamos Argentina

I hope that he would retreat from this decision, so to lead us to another trophy which we are missing since long, Copa America which is next year. Then his job would have completed and his name remembered forever.

But I understand that choice. No same coach, I say no one has achieved to have results for two consecutive world cups.

I understand his decision. Now this generation of footballers won't be any more around, it's time for new generation of players.

For the ones who think that this may have bad influence over the team, I reply don't worry.

Sabella's announcement has a clear message to the team: "This is my last match group, I we came TOGETHER this far and you have been awesome. We experienced the best dream one footballer and a coach can have. Now it's up to you do damn you heart, your soul, for me, for the nation and for the fans. Play as it is your last match of your life. We have a meeting with history, in Maracana. OUR LAST STOP IN THIS DREAM IS ONLY THE GLORY".

Not the news we want to hear now. Should have waited till after the victory. What will be the psychological effect of this announcement?

It is typical Argentine to switch coaches often these days. Ramon Diaz came to River made them champion and went away. Almeyda before him was not there long either. Happens to almost all clubs. Take Simeone. Three, four clubs in as many years. There is no consistency anymore.

After Sabella we should get a younger coach. Simeone will stay at Atletico. Candidates: Martino, Diaz, Bianchi (unlikely), last coach from Velez?

@mmh007: I agree, our main problem is that we don't stick with a manager, well in the past was the failure not going far in the competition, but now is different plus the players want Sabella. If we stayed with Pekerman in 2006, we would have achieved a lot by now. Now we are losing Sabella who took the team to the final. Even if we lose the final, still Sabella has achieved what previous coaches failed to do especially this year is more competitive WC than any world cup, hell even Switzerland and Belgium came with a project to win the world cup.

Not good, we will have to start all over gain with a new management, not good for the team progress. We thought this is it and he will continue after having world cup experience with the same coach.

As for our away kit in the final, remember this draw was tailored for the host side of bracket, they thought Brazil would go to the final, so they had one day rest advantage and they have to wear the home kit. Simple as that, but Germany got to enjoy the privilege of the semi's win.

Di Maria, and after I searched a lot about his situation, it appears he won't be completely fit, although he will make the squad, but he can't even come as a sub. Another sad news.

Mascherano is a strong candidate for the golden ball based on some journalists.

Germany is the most arrogant team of all time, and God just gifted them that 7up result so they can brag even more along with their white fans all over the world. I don't see any mention to their draw against Ghana and how Algeria & USA played them. No mention to our friendly win 3-1 which was last meeting between the two sides.